Predicted Outcome Value and Uncertainty Reduction Theories A Test of Competing Perspectives

This research tests several contrasting predictions from uncertainty reduction and predicted outcome value theories. Pairs of college classmates engaged in initial conversations with one another on the first day of classes. Research participants then reported on each pair's behavior during these conversations and their reactions to their partner and relationship. With few exceptions, predicted outcome value theory proposals were consistently supported by the results of this investigation. However, results failed to support uncertainty reduction theory's original axioms and theorems when predicted outcome value was taken into account. These findings are interpreted as strongly supporting the predicted outcome value perspective and its claim that uncertainty reduction processes are subservient to outcome maximization goals in initial interactions.     

When and How Goals Are Contagious in Social Interaction

Goal contagion occurs when a perceiver interacts with a partner whose behavior implies he/she is pursuing a particular goal and the perceiver accurately infers and subsequently pursues the partner's goal. Goal contagion was assessed in conversations between unacquainted individuals. In 2 experiments, the ways in which goal specificity, inference accuracy, and goal pursuit efficiency play a role in goal contagion were examined. In Experiment 1, goal contagion increased as perceivers accurately inferred a partner's goal, but only for an abstract information‐seeking goal. In a moderated mediation analysis, Experiment 2 demonstrated that goal pursuit efficiency fostered inference accuracy, which in turn encouraged goal contagion; the magnitude of this indirect effect was strongest for an abstract information‐seeking goal.     

Abstract: Within-Person Processes Leading to Quarrelsome Behavior in Interactions Between Romantic Partners

This study used multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM; Preacher, Zyphur, &; Zhang, 2010) to examine within-person processes that give rise to quarrelsome behavior in interactions between romantic partners. Based on Interpersonal Theory and Adult Attachment Theory, we hypothesized that a person's quarrelsome behavior would be predicted by (a) the direct effect of the partner's quarrelsome behavior, (b) an indirect effect mediated by the person's perceptions of the partner's quarrelsome behavior, and (c) an indirect effect mediated by the person's felt security. Using an event-contingent recording methodology, both partners in 93 cohabiting community couples reported independently on their quarrelsome behavior, felt security, and perceptions of the partner's quarrelsome behavior in interactions with each other during a 20-day period. Findings (see Figure 1) supported a direct effect of partner's increases in quarrelsome behavior on person's increases in quarrelsome behavior. This association was partly accounted for by perceptions of partner's behavior and felt security following these perceptions. The more a person perceived the partner as engaging in quarrelsome behavior, the more the person engaged in quarrelsome behavior [indirect effect = .016, 95% CI (.009 ? .022)]. Furthermore, the person's perception of greater quarrelsomeness in the partner's behavior was associated with decreases in the person's felt security, which in turn were related to increases in a person's quarrelsome behavior [indirect effect = .009, 95% CI (.005 ? .013)]. No gender differences were found. Findings indicate that a partner's increase in quarrelsome behavior is partly related to a person's increase in quarrelsome behavior in part to the extent that the person perceives the behavior as quarrelsome and consequently feels insecure during the interaction. Findings illustrate an application of MSEM for assessing multilevel mediation in the dyadic context. Moreover, the results suggest that theory and therapeutic interventions should consider interpersonal perceptions as the first link in the chain of affective and behavioral reactions to the interpersonal behaviors of others.     

Accuracy and bias in perceptions of emotionally supportive communication in marriage

Abstract This study examined accuracy and bias within people's perceptions of a spouse's emotionally supportive behavior in the United States. Hypotheses stated that people's self‐reported supportiveness, their marital satisfaction, and outside observers' ratings of their partner's support predict people's perceptions of their partner's supportiveness. Married dyads (N = 100) completed measures of marital satisfaction, engaged in a discussion about personal stressors, and rated their own and their spouse's emotional support during the interaction. Third‐party observers also provided a rating of each partner's emotionally supportive behavior. For husbands and wives, perceptions of partner support were positively associated with their own supportiveness and the partner's observable supportive communication. Marital satisfaction predicted greater perception of partner support for wives, but not for husbands.     

Can you make my goals easier to achieve? Effects of partner instrumentality on goal pursuit and relationship satisfaction

Goal pursuits are strongly influenced by romantic partners, and a partner's instrumentality to goals may be particularly important for goal pursuit. This study examined the effects of partner instrumentality on goal‐related effort, goal progress, goal commitment, and relationship satisfaction over time. It also examined whether relationship satisfaction moderated the effects of partner instrumentality on goal pursuit processes. Newly dating romantic partners (N = 59 couples) reported on their goals and relationship satisfaction at two assessments 3 months apart. Multilevel models indicated that partner instrumentality predicted increases in progress over time but only for those high in relationship satisfaction. Partner instrumentality also predicted increases in one's own relationship satisfaction but was unrelated to changes in the partner's satisfaction. These findings suggest that partner instrumentality benefits increased goal progress, particularly for those with satisfying relationships, and further increases relationship satisfaction.     

Perceiving regulation from intimate partners: Reflected appraisal and self‐regulation processes in close relationships

Cross‐sectional (N = 202) and longitudinal analyses over a 6‐month period (N = 155) assessed the consequences of perceiving regulation attempts from romantic partners. Greater perceived regulation from the partner was associated with more negative inferences regarding how closely individuals matched their partner's ideal standards in the targeted domain (inferred ideal consistency). Lower inferred ideal consistency, in turn, was associated with poorer relationship evaluations and predicted more negative perceptions of targeted self‐attributes. Individuals also directly responded to their partner's regulation efforts with attempts to change targeted features. Finally, perceiving more negative regulation strategies produced lower inferred ideal consistency, relationship evaluations, and self‐regulation efforts, whereas perceiving more positive strategies predicted greater inferred ideal consistency across time. The operation of reflected appraisal and self‐regulation processes within romantic relationships is discussed.     

Attachment styles and relationship quality: Actual,perceived, and ideal partner matching

Attachment dimension matching in dating relationships and how matching relates to relationship quality were investigated. Across 2 studies, individuals preferred similar but more secure partners (lower anxiety and lower avoidance) as reflected by their ideals. In Study 1, greater similarity between the self and perceptions of the partner's anxiety predicted more positive relationship outcomes (e.g., relationship satisfaction, trust). Similar results were found for ideal–perceived partner avoidance similarity, whereas ideal–perceived partner anxiety similarity was less important. Study 2 involved both partners in the relationship and indicated that relationship outcomes were predicted by the actor's and partner's attachment dimensions as well as by ideal–perceived partner similarity and self–perceived partner similarity.     

Reciprocity of Dyadic Trust in Close Male-Female Relationships

Abstract

A nonrecursive structural model specified 11 effects on trust in one's partner for 20 engaged, 67 married, and 11 divorced male-female dyads. According to the model, trust between partners is a reciprocally reinforced outcome, and 10 exogenous variables affect trust. The results showed that, for both sexes, there was a reciprocal effect for trust in one's partner, the perception of a partner's desire to control others had a negative effect on trust, and self-esteem had a positive effect on trust. Marital status and the perception of a partner's desire to be controlled had no effect on men's trust in their partners but highly significant negative effects on women's trust in their partners.     

When Do Personality and Emotion Predict Destructive Behavior During Relationship Conflict? The Role of Perceived Commitment Asymmetry

The current research examined whether perceived asymmetries in relationship commitment moderate the associations of personality traits and emotional states with enactment of hostile behavior during relationship conflicts. Participants included both members of 53 heterosexual romantic couples (M_age = 25.5 years). Participants completed questionnaire measures assessing personality traits, emotional states, relationship commitment, and perceptions of their partner's commitment. Participants then had an observed conflict discussion with their partner, which was rated by a panel of objective observers for hostile behavior. When participants perceived that they were less committed than their partners, their enactment of hostile behavior was predicted by traits and states that are associated with antisocial and pro‐social orientations (i.e., agreeableness, trait anger, chronic jealousy, and state negative emotion). In contrast, participants who perceived that they were more committed than their partners tended to refrain from hostile behavior, despite traits or states that may suggest hostile inclinations. These results suggest that perceiving that one is less committed than one's partner promotes behavioral expression of interpersonal dispositions and emotions, whereas perceiving that one is more committed than one's partner motivates inhibition of hostile behavior.     

Sexual Attitudes of Males and Females as Predictors of Interpersonal Attraction and Marital Compatibility1

Two investigations examine the effect of similarity of sexual attitudes on (a) attraction to a stranger and (b) marital sexual satisfaction. In an experiment using undergraduates, manipulation of subject-stranger similarity in general affective orientation to sexuality affected attraction and other evaluative dependent variables. In the second investigation, married couples revealed sexual attitudes and sexual satisfaction. Husbands and wives were similar (r= 0.58, p < 0.001) in their affective orientations to sexuality. Discrepancy between the partners’ scores predicted sexual dissatisfaction in both partners. In addition, the wife's affective orientation to sexuality predicted more indices of sexual satisfaction and adjustment in both the wife and the husband than did the husband's affective orientation to sexuality. Finally, spouses with a positive affective orientation to sexuality were more accurate when judging their partner's sexual enjoyment, compared to spouses with a negative orientation. The findings have implications for the effects of similarity of attitudes on interpersonal attraction and on relationship quality.     

Confirmation in Couples' Communication About Weight Management: An Analysis of How Both Partners Contribute to Individuals' Health Behaviors and Conversational Outcomes

Using confirmation theory, this study investigated how romantic couples' (N = 100) accepting and challenging communication was associated with several weight management (WM) outcomes (i.e., partners' general effectiveness in motivating each other to enact healthy behaviors, productivity of WM conversations, and diet and exercise behaviors). Actor–partner interdependence model analyses showed that acceptance and challenge from partners simultaneously predicted how effective partners were in motivating healthy behaviors, but these components of confirmation predicted the other outcomes in different ways. Analyses across the outcomes also revealed that similar partner communication styles predicted general effectiveness, more productive WM conversations, and healthier eating habits. The findings of this study highlight the importance of assessing the interdependence of partners' WM efforts.     

The effects of service dogs on social acknowledgments of people in wheelchairs

Able-bodied people often exhibit behaviors that show them to be socially uncomfortable upon encountering a physically disabled stranger. These behaviors include less eye contact, gaze avoidance, greater personal distance, and briefer social interactions. This study examined whether persons in wheelchairs with service dogs receive more frequent social acknowledgement from able-bodied strangers than people in wheelchairs without dogs receive. Behaviors of passersby were recorded by an observer who followed a person in a wheelchair at a distance of 15 to 30 feet. Observations were made in public areas amid pedestrian traffic, areas such as shopping malls and a college campus. The behaviors of passersby to the person in a wheelchair, with or without a service dog, were recorded, including smiles, conversation, touch, gaze aversion, path avoidance, or no response. Results indicated that both smiles and conversations from passersby increased significantly when the dogs were present. These findings suggest that the benefits of service dogs for their owners extend beyond working tasks to include enhanced opportunities for social exchange. The service dogs substantially reduced the tendency of able-bodied people to ignore or avoid the disabled person.     

Pragmatic Structure in Naturally Occurring Conversations for Making Appointments

Conversational structure was examined by applying pragmatic and sequential analyses to two-party, single-purpose, spontaneous conversations between acquaintances. A subgoal achievement label was given to each talking turn of 60 automatically tape-recorded telephone conversations between beauty salon receptionists and clients phoning to make appointments. Lag sequential analyses showed that these conversations have subgoal structures that resemble the ones found in quasinaturalistic appointment-making conversations between strangers. The results are discussed in terms of what was predicted about the degree of generalizability from quasinaturalistic appointment-making conversations between strangers to natural appointment-making conversations between acquaintances.     

What if they are right? Network approval,expectations, and relationship maintenance behaviors

This study drew on uncertainty reduction and decision‐making theories to investigate how perceptions of approval of romantic relationships from family and friends can influence romantic partners' dynamics. Using a dyadic approach, the authors examined whether expectations of a partner's behavior in the relationship mediated the associations between perceived social network approval and relationship maintenance behaviors in a sample of 137 couples. The actor–partner interdependence mediation model (APIMeM) was applied. Results showed that women's and men's perceptions of approval from their own and their partner's network were associated with their own level of expectations of their partner's behaviors. In turn, women's and men's expectations were associated with their own and their partner's maintenance behaviors.     

Shifting toward cooperative tendencies and forgiveness: How partner‐focused prayer transforms motivation

Several studies tested whether partner‐focused prayer shifts individuals toward cooperative tendencies and forgiveness. In Studies 1 and 2, participants who prayed more frequently for their partner were rated by objective coders as less vengeful. Study 3 showed that, compared to partners of targets in the positive partner thought condition, the romantic partners of targets assigned to pray reported a positive change in their partner's forgiveness. In Study 4, participants who prayed following a partner's “hurtful behavior” were more cooperative with their partners in a mixed‐motive game compared to participants who engaged in positive thoughts about their partner. In Study 5, participants who prayed for a close relationship partner reported higher levels of cooperative tendencies and forgiveness.     

Low intimacy as a mediator between depression and clinic couple relationship satisfaction

This study examined low intimacy as a mediator between partners' depression symptoms and low relationship satisfaction in a sample of 82 heterosexual couples who sought therapy at an outpatient clinic. Both the amount of intimate behavior that partners enact and the level of pleasure they experience from each other's intimate acts were assessed. Using an actor–partner interdependence model approach, path model analysis simultaneously included both partners' scores on measures of depression, intimate behavior, pleasure from partner's intimate behavior, and relationship satisfaction. Overall, female depression symptoms had a greater impact than male depression symptoms on the couple relationship. Male depression had little effect on intimacy, whereas the female partner's depression affected her pleasure from the male's intimate behavior and both partners' enactment of intimate behavior. The results indicate the importance of examining reciprocal influences between partners' functioning to understand and treat intimacy problems.     

Ordinary Social Interaction and the Main Effect Between Perceived Support and Affect

Relational regulation theory hypothesizes that (a) the main effect between perceived support and mental health primarily reflects ordinary social interaction rather than conversations about stress and how to cope with it, and (b) the extent to which a provider regulates a recipient's mental health primarily reflects the recipient's personal taste (i.e., is relational), rather than the provider's objective supportiveness. In three round‐robin studies, participants rated each other on supportiveness and the quality of ordinary social interaction, as well as their own affect when interacting with each other. Samples included marines about to deploy to Afghanistan (N = 100; 150 dyads), students sharing apartments (N = 64; 96 dyads), and strangers (N = 48; 72 dyads). Perceived support and ordinary social interaction were primarily relational, and most of perceived support's main effect on positive affect was redundant with ordinary social interaction. The main effect between perceived support and affect emerged among strangers after brief text conversations, and these links were partially verified by independent observers. Findings for negative affect were less consistent with theory. Ordinary social interaction appears to be able to explain much of the main effect between perceived support and positive affect.     

Reassuring sex: Can sexual desire and intimacy reduce relationship‐specific attachment insecurities?

Past research has shown that attachment orientations shape sexual processes within relationships. Yet, little has been done to explore the opposite direction. In the present research, we examined whether sexual desire and emotional intimacy reduce attachment insecurities over time in emerging relationships. In an 8‐month longitudinal study, we followed 62 newly dating couples across three measurement waves. At Time 1, romantic partners discussed sexual aspects of their relationship and judges coded their displays of sexual desire and intimacy. Participants also completed measures of relationship‐specific attachment anxiety and avoidance in each wave. The results indicated that men's displays of desire predicted a decline in their own and their partner's relationship‐specific insecurities. Conversely, women's displays of desire inhibited the decline in their partner's relationship‐specific insecurities, whereas women's displays of intimacy predicted a decline in their partner's relationship‐specific insecurities. These findings suggest that different sex‐related processes underlie attachment formation in men and women.